Chris Watts Now. Inside His Life in Prison 7 Years After Murdering His Wife and Kids

Chris Watts: Where He Is Now and His Life in Prison

In August 2018, Chris Watts’ life made headlines for a shocking reason. When his pregnant wife, Shanann, and their two daughters, Bella and Celeste, went missing from their Colorado home, Chris acted like a worried husband and father. But days later, he admitted he had killed them.

Chris claimed that he only killed Shanann after she supposedly killed their daughters. Police didn’t believe him and concluded he had murdered all three. In November 2018, he pleaded guilty to avoid the death penalty. Instead, he was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. He has spent most of that time in Wisconsin. In 2019, a friend said Chris was reflecting on his past and regretted hurting his family.

Who is Chris Watts?
Chris Watts worked for an oil company in Colorado. He met Shanann on Facebook in 2010, and the couple had two daughters, Bella (born 2013) and Celeste (born 2015). In 2018, Shanann discovered she was pregnant with a third child, a boy they planned to name Niko.

Before the murders, Shanann confided in friends that her marriage was in trouble. Chris was having an affair with a co-worker, Nichol Kessinger, and Shanann had confronted him about it.

What Was Chris Accused Of?
On August 15, 2018, two days after his family went missing, Chris confessed to killing Shanann. He said it happened after she allegedly killed their daughters, but police did not believe his story. Bella and Celeste were found in oil tanks at his work site, and Shanann’s body was discovered buried nearby. He was charged with three counts of first-degree murder and three counts of tampering with a body.

Conviction and Sentence
In November 2018, Chris pleaded guilty to all charges. He was convicted of five counts of first-degree murder, one count of unlawful termination of a pregnancy, and three counts of tampering with a body. He received five life sentences without parole.

Chris Watts’ Confession
Chris revealed that on the night of the murders, he told Shanann he didn’t love her anymore. When she threatened to leave and take the children, he strangled her. He then drove her body to an oil field while the girls were in the car, later killing them as well.

Life in Prison
Chris was moved to a maximum-security prison in Waupun, Wisconsin, in December 2018. Since then, he has received two conduct reports—one in 2020 for unauthorized communication and property transfer, and another in 2021 for disobeying orders and possessing contraband.

While in prison, he has kept photos of his family in his cell, causing outrage online. He also works as a custodian and exchanges letters with women outside prison, some sending personal photos. Because he is in protective custody, these letters are one of his few ways to connect with the outside world.